Brewers Association: Craft Brewing Volume Hops 13 Percent

The Brewers Association (BA), the trade association representing small and independent brewers recently released 2011 data on U.S. craft brewing. Craft brewers saw volume rise 13%, with a 15% increase in retail sales from 2010 to 2011, representing a total barrel increase of 1.3 million.

In 2011, craft brewers represented 5.68% of volume of the U.S. beer market, up from 4.97% in 2010, with production reaching 11.5 million barrels. Additionally, the BA estimates the actual dollar sales figure from craft brewers in 2011 was $8.7 billion, up from $7.6 billion in 2010. Increased retails sales represented 9.1% of the $95.5 billion U.S. beer market.

With 250 brewery openings and only 37 closings, the BA also reported that 1,989 breweries were operating in the U.S. in 2011 — an 11% increase from the previous year. Small brewers employed approximately 103,585 workers in the U.S in 2011.

“We saw rapid growth in brewery openings last year, particularly with microbrewery start-ups, and these numbers are poised to rise even more in 2012,” added Gatza. “In February 2012, we already topped 2,000 operating breweries — a truly remarkable milestone. We look forward to even more success and the continued expansion of the craft beer market.”